Team Formax’s Chris van der Drift heads to Sydney Motorsport Park leading the Porsche Carrera Cup Asia Series. The 2018 season continues as the series heads down under for a decisive Round 6 and 7 in Australia, with an invitational between sister series Porsche Carrera Cup Australia rounding out an action-packed race weekend.
This is the second time Porsche Carrera Cup Asia has visited Sydney Motorsport Park, with the 4.5-km track proving an ample challenge during the series debut in 2016. The FIA Grade-2 circuit balances high-speeds and technical challenges, featuring varied elvations, tight turns and multiple passing areas – giving the series‘ 27 entries plenty of opportunities to test the limits of the Porsche 911 GT3 Cup (Type 991 II).
Van der Drift has emerged as the mid-season leader following a dramatic race weekend in Thailand that saw him take two podiums, earning 118 points and the table lead. Van der Drift also enters into the weekend with an edge after racing at Sydney Motorsport Park with the Australian V8 Supercars in 2017.
But the lead is far from unchallenged, with van der Drift fiercely pursued by a talented line-up of drivers all eager to prove their champion abilities. Proving incredibly formidable in the 2018 season is Team StarChase’s Philip Hamprecht, who held the early season lead before a streak of misfortune in Thailand knocked him down to second place with 88 points, 24 points ahead of Will Bamber of Earl Bamber Motorsport, in third with 64 points.
Asia and Australia clash in friendly night race
The race weekend will also see the series’ first night race of the season as the Porsche Carrera Cup Asia and Australia prepare to face-off once again with two evening invitational races between the Overall and Pro-Am classes.
This is the third invitational race between the two series. During the first invitational at Sydney in 2016, Porsche Carrera Cup Australia took first place wins in both classes, but Porsche Carrera Cup Asia reciprocated at Sepang International Circuit in 2017 after taking both first place podium spots.
“We’re excited to be returning to Sydney Motorsport Park and grateful to our sister series in Australia for their role as host. The invitational race is a truly unique opportunity for our two series to share their passion for Porsche motorsport and grow the region’s motorsport community. With our series approaching the second half of the season, every point is now crucial. We cannot wait to see the results of another thrilling Porsche race weekend,” Porsche Carrera Cup Asia Manager Jochen Schaefer said.
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